It's Enough Just To Shine
by Guardian of Hope
Summary: Tip for a parent trying to be the north star to a child desperate for sun: Sometimes it's enough just to shine. Susan Noyes Anderson Growing up is never easy. Being at the age when your parents saved the world is even worse. assorted ships, lots of OCs, multi-season, multi-chapter


Disclaimer: Ownership of Power Rangers is between Disney and Saban. I work for/own neither.

A/N: This is the first chapter of a series. Each chapter is a one shot. It's about the Rangers' children and things that they deal with being Ranger kids. This chapter is the Bradley Pack, the children of Blake and Tori. I am planning two more chapters this weekend featuring the Kwan-Scott children and the Rocca children. If you want to know about any of the other Rangers, feel free to ask. I'm somewhat considering also adding a story like this that tells how each couple got together.

Yes this mean that there are OCs. A lot of OCs. The Bradley Pack is four in number and from oldest to youngest: Will, Mark, Lily, and Terry.

* * *

Lily let herself into the house with a final wave to her friend Shannon and sighed. She leaned against the door and listened, reveling in the feeling of a quiet house. Then she kicked off her shoes and nudged them into their place in the shoe corral then dumped her backpack on the living room couch as she headed for the kitchen.

There was a note on the counter and Lily read it as she grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl.

_Lily, _

_I had to take Terry to the ear doctor after school. Mike's at the track and Will is running a bit late, so don't be surprised if we all show up around six or so. If you want to cook, feel free, Mom went shopping today._

_Love_

_Dad_

Lily checked the fridge and the cabinets, then looked up at the clock. It was four thirty, the family would want to eat by six thirty if everyone was coming in at six. She had plenty of time to try a new recipe for Mexican lasagna before doing her homework.

She collected a hair tie from the small jar on the kitchen sink to pull her long, black hair out of the way, scrubbed up and set to work.

Although both of her brothers would have laughed themselves sick at the idea, Lily had always found that cooking was a soothing for her as meditation. There was something about the precise measurements and stirring tricks that let all of her daily worries fall way in favor of presenting the world with something delicious.

Once the Mexican lasagna was ready, Lily slid it into the fridge to await six o'clock, when she would bake it and then turned to her homework, namely a research project that would require extra computer time. Rather than argue and deal with her brother Mike's inability to understand the different levels of importance in schoolwork and motocross, Lily could go on now and get the information.

Not to mention it mean that she could look up some of _her_ favorite sites. For all that, Mike was quick to jump on his motocross sites; he was even quicker to run to Dad about her looking up cooking techniques when she'd gotten extra time for schoolwork.

Maybe this year her parents would be able to understand the need for another internet connection. She and Terry could share one, no problem. Terry only used the internet either to keep track of people playing the games he loved, or to get latest news on his favorite comics. Mike was the one who could spend half his life on the computer staring at bikes. Perhaps if she'd gotten Will on board last year, before he'd left town for college, it would have been possible.

Lily sighed and turned her attention to the screen, she had a project to finish, not moon over the unfairness of being one of four children raised on a history teacher's salary and a niche specialty store.

Just as she was printing out the last of the information she would need, the phone rang. "Bradley residence," she said.

"Hey Gumdrop."

Lily grinned, "Uncle Shane! How are you?"

"I'm good, are your parents home yet?" Shane asked.

Lily glanced at the clock, "Dad should be here soon, his note said six."

"Terry had to go to the doctor again?" Shane asked.

"Yeah," Lily replied.

"I wanted to talk to you Lily," Shane said, his tone suddenly serious.

"Okay?" Lily said slowly.

"Your mother came up during her lunch break to get enrollment forms," Shane said. "Lily, Gumdrop, honey, I thought you were going to tell them."

"I will," Lily said, "I just… haven't."

"When are you going to tell them? You know that there's going to be money involved in enrolling at the Academy." Shane said sternly. "They aren't going to be mad and if they're disappointed that you won't go to the Academy, they'll be prouder that you stood up for what you really want."

"Maybe you…" Lily said quietly.

"I'm not going to tell your parents about this any more than I told them about you wrecking your bike, or the fender bender, or the incident with the paint. Your job is to tell you parents things that are important and Lily, you know you'd be miserable up here."

"Okay," Lily sighed. "I'll tell them."

"Tell them what?"

Lily yelped, "Will!" She stared at her blond haired brother, "I didn't hear you come in."

"That's because I'm a ninja," Will replied loftily. "Who's on the phone, Lollypop?"

Lily wrinkled her nose at the nickname, "Hey Uncle Shane," she said, "I'm okay."

"What happened?" Shane asked.

"Will snuck up on me," Lily replied, "something about his 'mad ninja skillz'."

Shane laughed, "Well, tell your parents that I called, okay? I've got to get this casserole in the oven before Kayla skins me alive for forgetting to make dinner again."

"I hear that," Lily said, "I've got something to go in the oven too. I love you Uncle Shane."

"Love you to, Gumdrop," Shane replied cheerfully.

Lily hung the phone up and headed into the kitchen, where Will was poking through the fridge. Lily turned the oven on and turned, "Could I possibly prevail on you to be a gentleman and hand me the glass casserole dish with the foil on it, please?"

"What's going on with you and Shane?" Will asked as he pulled the dish out.

Lily took the dish, "I need to tell Mom and Dad something. Uncle Shane's giving me moral support."

"What do you need to tell them?" Will asked.

"It's nothing," Lily replied.

"Must be pretty big if you went running to Shane," Will replied. "You can tell me."

"I don't want to," Lily replied.

"Aw, come on Lollypop. I won't run telling stories." Will said.

"I don't want to tell you," Lily said again. "I'm not going to tell you."

"Don't be like that," Will said, "you know you can tell me anything."

"I could," Lily replied thoughtfully as she pushed the casserole in the oven, "if I wanted my personal business spread across half the city by noon tomorrow."

"Lily," Will said.

"Oh, Will, you're home," Tori said as she came in from the garage, Mike on her heels.

"Hi Mom," Will said, "I just got in."

"Meaning you have dumped your bags in the front entry so you could scare your sister," Tori said with an indulgent smile.

"Speaking of, Uncle Shane called," Lily interjected. "He said to let you know. Dinner will be ready in half an hour."

"Thanks honey," Tori said.

Lily slid out of the kitchen as Tori hugged Will and Mike crowded in like an over eager puppy. With a soft sigh, she grabbed her bag from the dining room and headed upstairs. As she dumped her stuff on her bed, she saw her dad's blue Rogue pull into the driveway.

Laughter echoed up from the living room, but Lily shook her head. They'd send Terry up in a few minutes to see what she was up to, but for a few moments longer, Lily could steel herself for the loud, happy family that loved her but still hadn't figured her out.

There was a knock on her open door, Lily looked up and smiled at her little brother. Of all of them, Terry looked the most like their dad. "Hey," he said.

"Hey," Lily said with a little wave.

Terry began to sign, then stopped and sighed, "Mom wanted to know if you wanted garlic bread?"

"No," Lily said strongly. "I've got this, thanks."

"No problem," Terry replied, stepping back.

"Hey," Lily said as she headed down the hall, "I won't tell if you want to sign sometimes. There's nothing wrong with it."

"But I don't have to," Terry muttered.

Lily paused and eyed her little brother, "No, you don't have to. If you want to, it's ok to want things."

Whatever Terry would have said was cut off by their dad, "Lily! DO you need Tori to make garlic bread?"

"NO!" Lily shouted back as she reached the stairs. "No, it's not garlic appropriate." She jumped from the landing, "I was going to toss a salad when I had elbow room in the kitchen."

"Toss away," Blake replied, "and don't let your mother catch you doing that."

"She taught me," Lily replied as she slid around him, pausing to kiss his cheek. "Love you Dad."

As dinner wore on, Lily found herself unusually grateful that Will was very good at attracting attention; she was not looking forward to explaining to her parents what was going on. As she dished up a second helping, Will looked at her and Lily realized he was going to push the issue.

"So, Lily's keeping a secret," Will announced. "Uncle Shane thinks she should tell you guys."

"Will," Lily said.

"Is something wrong?" Tori asked.

"Not really," Lily said, staring down at her plate.

"Lily, you know you can tell us anything," Blake added.

"I know," Lily said. She bit her lip, and then glanced up at her mom, "Uncle Shane said you went to the Academy today."

"Yeah, I did," Tori said, "I was thinking you might want to start classes this summer. You're practically a student with all the time you spend up there."

"I," Lily stopped and swallowed.

"Do you not want to?" Blake asked.

Lily looked down again and clenched her fist in her lap. She looked up, "I don't want to go to the Academy at all. I don't want to be a ninja."

There had been more reaction to the news that Hunter and Dustin had adopted three children in less than a year and "forgotten" to tell anyone until it was almost Christmas.

"Seriously?" Will yelled, "You can't, ugh." He stood up, knocking his chair over. "Why did we get you anyways?"

"William Hunter Bradley!" Tori and Blake snapped in unison, both also standing up.

"Pick up your chair," Tori said coldly.

"And sit. Back. Down." Blake said in that cold, short voice that he saved for the worst of his students. Lily always thought she could hear a roll of thunder in Blake's words.

Will picked up his chair and sat down, looking stunned.

"Lillian, honey," Tori said, "are you sure?"

Lily nodded, "I've been thinking about it for a while. I love the Academy, and it's always been fun to spend time with Uncle Shane, but that's not what I want."

"What do you want?" Blake asked.

Lily thought of the pamphlet in her bag. "I want to go to culinary school when I graduate and become a pastry chef."

"You're an awesome cook," Terry blurted out.

"You are good," Tori said slowly.

"There's this program," Lily said, then stopped.

"What about it?" Blake asked.

"It's a summer program at the university for high school students who want to be chefs." Lily replied.

"The one that that Michigan chef is running?" Blake asked her.

"Michelin and yes." Lily replied, thinking he'd probably heard about it at the high school.

Tori took a deep breath, "I need to learn more about the program," she said, "but I think it could be do able." Lily smiled, relieved. "However, Lily, Terry, and Mike, why don't you excuse us. Your father and I need to have a word with Will."

"Yes ma'am," Lily said, she turned to her brothers, "come help me with desert."

"All right," Terry said. Mike was already heading for the kitchen.


End file.
